AllAboutTL
Newbie
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2004
- Messages
- 2
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 551
I posted this on HCS while TY was down. Now, time for the real experts to chime-in. Some of these topics have been covered, but here's my take anyway......
After 300 quick 'break-in' miles in the UP of Michigan before Xmas, it's time to see what this sled is really all about. Trip started in Searchmont, ON. scheduled to ride to Hearst, ON. then either the east or west loop back. Car thermometer reads -19F when we unload them on Jan 21. Didn't have any temps above 0F until the last day. The group consisted of an '03 ZR9, '03 XC8 and my '05 RX1.
General Comments - storage on this sled is lacking. I added a windshield bag along with my saddlebags and trunk bag. I'd like to add a tank bag, but I think seating would be very restrictive. Skidoo has figured out touring with the GSX. Seen many of them with the built-in gas/luggage units. Nice. Oddly enough, I felt the right-hand foot well was cold to my foot in these extreme temperatures. I'm used to my old Polaris kicking out tons of heat from the exhaust...not so on this machine. Left foot did not experience this. I'll be looking to block the air flow to the right foot well. Any other RX1 riders notice this? Also, the reverse lever froze-up, was hard to engaged in these temps.
Digital Speedometer is nice, however, damn thing was frosted for the entire trip. Speed digits are easy enough to see-through the frost, but my tired old eyes couldn't make out the odometer reading unless stopped. This was very frustrating when you're trying to measure mileage progression between stops.
Overall, fuel economy was always 1/3 less than either the Cat or Poo. We calculated roughly a $500USD savings in fuel/oil for a 3000 mile season. Enough to pay for a trip....not bad!
Trail Monster - This sled was designed to be trail-ridden...hard. It's absolutely perfect for wide open, high speed Ontario trails. Cornering is predictable and stable...even with the 4" OEM carbides. I can't wait to upgrade those. Braking requires finger-tip pressure only and is excellent. I've grown to enjoy the 'engine braking' of the 4 stroke. I was apprehensive before, but now, use it to my advantage entering corners. Rode 200-300 miles each day, no fatigue factor. Got in the deep snow a few times, this is where you really feel the extra weight.
Suspension - Stock setup is not aggressive enough, I'm 175 lbs plus gear. The sled bottomed on all the g-outs when running at trail speeds, 40-80 mph. Increasing the tunnel adjust to 'full hard' only helped slightly. I've since increased the mono-shock preload by two clicks. Only tested in open fields so-far. As discussed often on the RX1 forums, the stock weight transfer is way to much. Feels cool to carry the skis out of a corner, but unpractical on the trails. I've adjusted the transfer-control-arm half way between STD and MIN. We'll see.
Ice build-up in the tunnel seems excessive to the point of vibration every time the suspension compresses a little and the studs gouge into the glacier that has formed under there. It seems to me, there are too many structural elements in the tunnel (tunnel protectors, exhaust fixturing) for the ice to form around and prevent breaking-off occasionally. This could have some bearing on the bottoming issue with all the extra weight of the ice block...the entire length of the tunnel about 4" thick. That's a lot of mass! I tried remove it by bouncing the rear end to no avail.
One other odd thing. I often do "bat turns" on the trail to turn around....20 mph, lock the track, slide, and do a 180. Some times after performing that maneuver it seems the gear case or clutches 'locked-up'. Apply throttle and it would just grind a little. I had to fiddle with the reverse lever or sit a few seconds then take off again. Any RX1 riders experience this?
Race Results - Stock ZR9 w/192 studs -vs- RX1 w/96 studs. Rolling start - RX1 pulls the cat every time. High speed starts, ~70MPH, Cat would pull a sled length then the RX1 would recover somewhat.
Conclusion - Total miles 875. Polaris blew a jackshaft bearing in Hearst. The owners of P&L Polaris came in on Sunday to diagnose the problem. They couldn't fix it until Monday, but you don't get that kind of service in the States. I've got mixed emotions about this sled, I think there may be a better 'all around' sled out there, but a few more thousand, trouble free miles may change my mind................
Jack in Ohio
After 300 quick 'break-in' miles in the UP of Michigan before Xmas, it's time to see what this sled is really all about. Trip started in Searchmont, ON. scheduled to ride to Hearst, ON. then either the east or west loop back. Car thermometer reads -19F when we unload them on Jan 21. Didn't have any temps above 0F until the last day. The group consisted of an '03 ZR9, '03 XC8 and my '05 RX1.
General Comments - storage on this sled is lacking. I added a windshield bag along with my saddlebags and trunk bag. I'd like to add a tank bag, but I think seating would be very restrictive. Skidoo has figured out touring with the GSX. Seen many of them with the built-in gas/luggage units. Nice. Oddly enough, I felt the right-hand foot well was cold to my foot in these extreme temperatures. I'm used to my old Polaris kicking out tons of heat from the exhaust...not so on this machine. Left foot did not experience this. I'll be looking to block the air flow to the right foot well. Any other RX1 riders notice this? Also, the reverse lever froze-up, was hard to engaged in these temps.
Digital Speedometer is nice, however, damn thing was frosted for the entire trip. Speed digits are easy enough to see-through the frost, but my tired old eyes couldn't make out the odometer reading unless stopped. This was very frustrating when you're trying to measure mileage progression between stops.
Overall, fuel economy was always 1/3 less than either the Cat or Poo. We calculated roughly a $500USD savings in fuel/oil for a 3000 mile season. Enough to pay for a trip....not bad!
Trail Monster - This sled was designed to be trail-ridden...hard. It's absolutely perfect for wide open, high speed Ontario trails. Cornering is predictable and stable...even with the 4" OEM carbides. I can't wait to upgrade those. Braking requires finger-tip pressure only and is excellent. I've grown to enjoy the 'engine braking' of the 4 stroke. I was apprehensive before, but now, use it to my advantage entering corners. Rode 200-300 miles each day, no fatigue factor. Got in the deep snow a few times, this is where you really feel the extra weight.
Suspension - Stock setup is not aggressive enough, I'm 175 lbs plus gear. The sled bottomed on all the g-outs when running at trail speeds, 40-80 mph. Increasing the tunnel adjust to 'full hard' only helped slightly. I've since increased the mono-shock preload by two clicks. Only tested in open fields so-far. As discussed often on the RX1 forums, the stock weight transfer is way to much. Feels cool to carry the skis out of a corner, but unpractical on the trails. I've adjusted the transfer-control-arm half way between STD and MIN. We'll see.
Ice build-up in the tunnel seems excessive to the point of vibration every time the suspension compresses a little and the studs gouge into the glacier that has formed under there. It seems to me, there are too many structural elements in the tunnel (tunnel protectors, exhaust fixturing) for the ice to form around and prevent breaking-off occasionally. This could have some bearing on the bottoming issue with all the extra weight of the ice block...the entire length of the tunnel about 4" thick. That's a lot of mass! I tried remove it by bouncing the rear end to no avail.
One other odd thing. I often do "bat turns" on the trail to turn around....20 mph, lock the track, slide, and do a 180. Some times after performing that maneuver it seems the gear case or clutches 'locked-up'. Apply throttle and it would just grind a little. I had to fiddle with the reverse lever or sit a few seconds then take off again. Any RX1 riders experience this?
Race Results - Stock ZR9 w/192 studs -vs- RX1 w/96 studs. Rolling start - RX1 pulls the cat every time. High speed starts, ~70MPH, Cat would pull a sled length then the RX1 would recover somewhat.
Conclusion - Total miles 875. Polaris blew a jackshaft bearing in Hearst. The owners of P&L Polaris came in on Sunday to diagnose the problem. They couldn't fix it until Monday, but you don't get that kind of service in the States. I've got mixed emotions about this sled, I think there may be a better 'all around' sled out there, but a few more thousand, trouble free miles may change my mind................
Jack in Ohio
YEA... Thats the brake pads melting to the rotor. let them cool and brek them loose with hp and all is fine.
Swiss Sledder
TY 4 Stroke God
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2003
- Messages
- 2,792
- Reaction score
- 6
- Points
- 816
- Location
- Bidford on Avon, United Kingdom
- Website
- www.mi5.gov.uk
Just did a 700 mile bagger trip myself and got to ride one sled that had the tank bag installed on it. I prefer to ride very forward on the seat, so the tank bag was very uncomfortable for me because I could not sit where I normally do. I agree on the storage issue of the RX-1. They need to fix this. I too noticed the Ski-Doo luggage concept on other sleds we saw during the trip. Very impressive.
I think the weight transfer is a preference thing. I really like the stock settings, and after Tork rode my sled, he had a dealer adjust his sled to get more transfer on his Vector.
Good report though.
I think the weight transfer is a preference thing. I really like the stock settings, and after Tork rode my sled, he had a dealer adjust his sled to get more transfer on his Vector.
Good report though.
RX-Dave
Expert
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2004
- Messages
- 308
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 591
The more you ride it the more you will like it. Honestly.
As far as the ice build up, I know it can be a large amount. I just let mine idle for awhile at trail stops. It will not load up at idle like a typ. 2 stroke.
As far as the ice build up, I know it can be a large amount. I just let mine idle for awhile at trail stops. It will not load up at idle like a typ. 2 stroke.
1,275 on mine now and only a few issues. At the dealer right now for RA cable upgrade and gauges fogging(maybe '06 will finally have this issue solved). Rode my father's T660 and he rode the RX-1. Cat seemed big, like driving a Cadillac compared to my sportscar like ride. Dad said mine seemed to take the bumps better! Looks like I'll have to keep it for a few years.
AllAboutTL
Newbie
- Joined
- Nov 2, 2004
- Messages
- 2
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 551
RX-1MAN said:
RX-1Man, sounds like we're in parallel universes. I just noticed this past w/e that my R/A cable was broken in half as well. I dropped-off at the dealer for that fix and a new gauge as well. I wonder if my odometer will be reset with the new gauge?
Jack in Ohio
ReX
TY 4 Stroke God
AllAboutTL,
Your experiences are identical to mine during the lower miles. Great sled, but exactly the same minor negative comments as you have.
Now that I have 3300 miles on my sled I have found a number of other issues:
- If you ride aggressively you really need the stiffer spring (back ordered in Canada - all season so far). Mine keeps getting "shorter" and I have to keep cranking it up (now 2nd c-clip position, setting #7). I weigh 211 (just weighed myself today).
- w-arm bushings have already been replaced once and will need replacing again in the near future. That will be 3 sets in a little over 3300 miles. Hopefully there will be an updated bushing available soon.
- w-arm now has a hairline crack close to the right, lower w-arm bushing (arm is backordered in Canada).
- Ski bolts loosened off (or the skis mounting holes "stretched" a little) and steering got very sloppy.
- Steering bushing located behind the chaincase has partially seized up (very difficult to turn the handlebars) and is "spitting" part of the bushing out.
- Lower control arm and spindle bushings are getting quite warn (lots of slop).
- Very cold temperatures and long hauls the crankcase breather freezes up (even with the updated "slit") and the engine blows/burns oil (no oil consumption in warmer temperatures).
- Crankcase pto seal is now leaking oil (probably due to the above).
- There is a small amount of oil leaking past the valve cover o-rings into the spark plug holes (again probably due to the crankcase ventilation icing up).
- On long hauls (12+ hours per day for several days) in cold weather the seat seems to absorb moisture and gets uncomfortably hard (and the seat cover gets all wrinkled until it thaws out).
- The speedometer cluster keeps frosting up on cold days.
- The lack of grease fittings on the sled is a potential problem down the road.
Having said all that I still really like the sled. If these fundamental issues (mono-shock spring, crankcase ventilation, grease fittings, speedometer frosting up) are resolved in the 06 model year I will be seriously considering trading in the 05 (although I don't like to buy 1st year models).
Your experiences are identical to mine during the lower miles. Great sled, but exactly the same minor negative comments as you have.
Now that I have 3300 miles on my sled I have found a number of other issues:
- If you ride aggressively you really need the stiffer spring (back ordered in Canada - all season so far). Mine keeps getting "shorter" and I have to keep cranking it up (now 2nd c-clip position, setting #7). I weigh 211 (just weighed myself today).
- w-arm bushings have already been replaced once and will need replacing again in the near future. That will be 3 sets in a little over 3300 miles. Hopefully there will be an updated bushing available soon.
- w-arm now has a hairline crack close to the right, lower w-arm bushing (arm is backordered in Canada).
- Ski bolts loosened off (or the skis mounting holes "stretched" a little) and steering got very sloppy.
- Steering bushing located behind the chaincase has partially seized up (very difficult to turn the handlebars) and is "spitting" part of the bushing out.
- Lower control arm and spindle bushings are getting quite warn (lots of slop).
- Very cold temperatures and long hauls the crankcase breather freezes up (even with the updated "slit") and the engine blows/burns oil (no oil consumption in warmer temperatures).
- Crankcase pto seal is now leaking oil (probably due to the above).
- There is a small amount of oil leaking past the valve cover o-rings into the spark plug holes (again probably due to the crankcase ventilation icing up).
- On long hauls (12+ hours per day for several days) in cold weather the seat seems to absorb moisture and gets uncomfortably hard (and the seat cover gets all wrinkled until it thaws out).
- The speedometer cluster keeps frosting up on cold days.
- The lack of grease fittings on the sled is a potential problem down the road.
Having said all that I still really like the sled. If these fundamental issues (mono-shock spring, crankcase ventilation, grease fittings, speedometer frosting up) are resolved in the 06 model year I will be seriously considering trading in the 05 (although I don't like to buy 1st year models).
